Air conditioner

ABSTRACT

Disclosed herein is an air conditioner including a suction panel which includes a suction port through which air is suctioned in inside a housing. The suction panel is formed to rotate with an axial direction of an air blowing fan or a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the air blowing fan as a rotation axis to be coupled with or separated from the housing. Accordingly, a user may easily and intuitively separate the suction panel and falling of the suction panel, which may occur when the suction panel is separated, may be effectively reduced using a supporting unit disposed at the suction panel. Also, the housing and cover members which cover an outer perimeter of a lower portion of the housing may be coupled with each other by pressurizing the cover members toward the housing, thereby allowing the user to easily coupled the cover members.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/146,197 filed on May 4, 2016, which claims the benefit of KoreanPatent Application Nos. 10-2015-0148300, filed on Oct. 23, 2015 and10-2016-0036357, filed on Mar. 25, 2016 in the Korean IntellectualProperty Office, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein byreference.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a suction panel and acover member for forming a suction port of an air conditioner.

2. Description of the Related Art

An air conditioner is an apparatus which includes a compressor, acondenser, an expansion valve, an evaporator, an air blowing fan, etc.and control an indoor temperature, indoor humidity, an indoor air flow,etc. using a cooling cycle. Air conditioners may be divided into aseparated type which includes an indoor unit disposed indoors and anoutdoor unit disposed outdoors and an integrated type which includesboth an indoor unit and an outdoor unit disposed in a single housing.

An indoor unit of an air conditioner includes a heat exchanger whichthermally exchanges a refrigerant with air, an air blowing fan whichmoves air, and a motor which drives the air blowing fan to cool or heata room.

Indoor units of air conditioners suction indoor air to perform a heatexchange using heat exchangers, and discharge the thermally exchangedair. Here, filters may be disposed in suction ports through which air issuctioned so as to discharge, suction, and discharge fresh air.

Users may maintain a clean state of indoor air by regularly cleaning thefilters, by separating suction panels at which suction ports areprovided to remove the filters to the outside of air conditioners toclean the filters.

Particularly, in the case of a ceiling-embedded air conditioner, it isdifficult for users to separate suction panels disposed at highpositions.

SUMMARY

Therefore, it is an aspect of the present disclosure to provide an airconditioner which allows a user to easily separate a suction panel.

It is another aspect of the present disclosure to provide an airconditioner which allows a user to easily couple a cover member.

It is another aspect of the present disclosure to provide an airconditioner which includes a circular filter.

Additional aspects of the present disclosure will be set forth in partin the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from thedescription, or may be learned by practice of the present disclosure.

In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, an airconditioner includes a housing, a heat exchanger provided inside thehousing, and a suction panel which includes a suction port and has acircular shape. Here, the suction panel is configured to rotate withrespect to the housing in a circumferential direction of the suctionpanel and to be separably coupled with the housing.

The suction panel may include a coupling member provided on one side ofthe suction panel to be inserted into and coupled with the housing, andthe housing may include a coupling portion which supports the couplingmember inserted into the housing.

A plurality of such coupling members may be arranged in thecircumferential direction of the suction panel, and a plurality of suchcoupling portions may be provided corresponding to the plurality ofcoupling members.

The coupling member may include a guide surface which guides thecoupling member to the coupling portion and includes a curved surfaceand an insertion protrusion which protrudes from one side of the guidesurface and is supported by the coupling portion.

A filter to be separably coupled with the suction panel may be disposedon a side on which the coupling member of the suction panel is provided,and the coupling member may further include a hook which supports atleast one side of the filter.

The coupling portion may include a guide groove which guides aninsertion and a withdrawal of the coupling member, an insertion grooveinto which the coupling member is inserted, and a supporting step whichsupports the inserted coupling member.

The housing may include an upper housing which covers the heat exchangerand a lower housing disposed on one side of the heat exchanger. Thelower housing may include a first lower housing, which includes one sideadjacent to the heat exchanger, and a second lower housing disposed onthe other side of the first lower housing. The guide groove may beprovided in the second lower housing, and the insertion groove and thesupporting step may be provided in the first lower housing.

The air conditioner may further include a supporting unit which includesa connecting member connecting one side of the suction panel with oneside of the housing so as to support the suction panel while the suctionpanel is spaced apart from the housing when the suction panel isseparated from the housing.

The air conditioner may further include a supporting unit which includesa link member connecting the suction panel with the housing so as tosupport the suction panel while the suction panel is spaced apart fromthe housing when the suction panel is separated from the housing, and aslide slit provided in each of the suction panel and the housing toallow both ends of the link member to slide with respect to the suctionpanel and the housing.

The housing may be provided in a cylindrical shape. The heat exchangermay be provided in an annular shape. The housing may include a dischargeport which is located between an inner circumferential surface of thehousing and an outer circumferential surface of the heat exchanger andincludes a circular arc shape. The suction panel may be provided insidethe discharge port in a radial direction.

In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, an airconditioner includes a housing including a cylindrical shape, a heatexchanger provided inside the housing, a drain tray disposed to collectcondensate water generated by the heat exchanger, and a cover memberwhich covers an outer perimeter of the housing and includes a circularopening. Here, the cover member is coupled with at least one of thehousing and the drain tray and is provided to be rotatable with respectto the housing in a circumferential direction.

The housing and the drain tray may include a first assembling portionand a second assembling portion which protrude outward from outercircumferential surfaces thereof and are disposed at correspondingpositions to overlap with each other, respectively. A recessed portionmay be formed in at least one of the first assembling portion and thesecond assembling portion to be concave in an axial direction of thehousing.

The cover member may include a coupling hook capable of beinghook-coupled with at least one of the first assembling portion and thesecond assembling portion. The recessed portion may have a larger widththan a width of the coupling hook. The cover member may rotate as muchas a difference between the widths of the recessed portion and thecoupling hook to control a gap.

The cover member may include a coupling slit which includes alongitudinal portion which extends in a circumferential direction of thecircular opening. The cover member may be coupled with at least one ofthe first assembling portion and the second assembling portion and thenmay rotate as much as a length of the longitudinal portion to control agap.

The cover member may rotate in the circumferential direction of thehousing and may be supported by at least one of the first assemblingportion and the second assembling portion.

A coupling protrusion which protrudes inward in a radial direction ofthe cover member may be provided at an inner circumferential surface ofthe cover member, and the coupling protrusion may be supported by andcoupled with at least one of the first assembling portion and the secondassembling portion when disposed in a position overlapping the first andsecond assembling portions.

The cover member may further include an auxiliary coupling protrusionwhich protrudes inward in the radial direction of the cover member to becoupled with one side of the recessed portion when supported by the atleast one of the first assembling portion and the second assemblingportion.

The cover member may be selectable from cover members in differentshapes, and the recessed portion is coupled with the selected covermember.

The selected cover member may include a coupling hook coupled with therecessed portion, and the recessed portion may have a larger width thana width of the coupling hook to control a gap.

The selected cover member may include a coupling protrusion supported byat least one of the first and second assembling portions and anauxiliary coupling protrusion coupled with the recessed portion to limitrotating of the cover member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and/or other aspects of the present disclosure will becomeapparent and more readily appreciated from the following description ofthe embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings ofwhich:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an indoor unit of the air conditioner inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a portion taken along lineI-I shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the air conditioner inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a rear view illustrating a state in which a second lowerhousing of the air conditioner in accordance with one embodiment of thepresent disclosure is removed;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a part shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a shape of a separated suction panel ofthe air conditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 7 is a rear view of the air conditioner in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure from which the suction panel isremoved;

FIG. 8 is a top view of the suction panel of the air conditioner inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a view of a coupling member of the air conditioner inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a state in which the filter is coupledwith the coupling member of the air conditioner in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 11 is a view of the coupling portion of the air conditioner inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view of the lower housing of the airconditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 13 is a view of a supporting unit of the air conditioner inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of a supporting unit of an airconditioner in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 15 is a side cross-sectional view schematically illustrating theair conditioner in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 16 is a side cross-sectional view schematically illustrating astate in which a suction panel of the air conditioner in accordance withanother embodiment of the present disclosure is coupled with a housing;

FIG. 17 is an exploded perspective view of a supporting unit of an airconditioner in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 18 is a side cross-sectional view schematically illustrating asuction panel of the air conditioner in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present disclosure when being separated;

FIG. 19 is a side cross-sectional view schematically illustrating thesuction panel of the air conditioner in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present disclosure when being coupled;

FIG. 20 is a perspective view illustrating a suction panel of an airconditioner in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure when being separated;

FIG. 21 is a side cross-sectional view schematically illustrating thesuction panel of the air conditioner in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present disclosure when being separated;

FIG. 22 is a view illustrating a state in which a suction panel of anair conditioner in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure when being separated;

FIG. 23 is a view illustrating a state in which a cover member inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure is separated;

FIG. 24 is a partial view illustrating a state in which the airconditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosureis coupled;

FIG. 25 is a partial enlarged top view of the cover member in accordancewith one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 26 is a view illustrating a rotation state of the cover member inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 27 is a partial enlarged view of a cover member in accordance withanother embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 28 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which thecover member in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure is separated from the air conditioner;

FIG. 29 is a view illustrating a state in which a cover member inaccordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure isseparated;

FIG. 30 is a view illustrating a state in which the cover member inaccordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure is coupled;

FIG. 31 is a perspective view of the cover member in accordance withanother embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIGS. 32A and 32B are top views illustrating a state in which the covermember in accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosureis coupled;

FIG. 33 is a partial perspective view of a filter in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 34 is a top view of the filter in accordance with one embodiment ofthe present disclosure; and

FIG. 35 is a partial enlarged view of the filter in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments described herein and configurations shown in the drawingsare merely exemplary examples. Also, various modified examples withwhich these embodiments and the drawings could be replaced may bepresent at the time of filing of the present application.

Also, throughout the drawings, like reference numerals designate likeelements.

Also, the terms used herein explain the embodiments but are not intendedto restrict and/or limit the present disclosure. Singular expressions,unless defined otherwise in context, include plural expressions.Throughout the specification, the terms “comprise” and “have”, etc. areused herein to specify the presence of stated features, numbers, steps,operations, elements, components or combinations thereof but do notpreclude the presence or addition of one or more other features,numbers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinationsthereof.

Also, it should be understood that although the terms “first”, “second”,etc. may be used herein to describe various components, these componentsare not limited by these terms. These terms are used only to distinguishone component from another. For example, without departing from thescope of the present disclosure, a first component may be referred to asa second component, and similarly, the second component may be referredto as the first component. The term “and/or” includes any and allcombinations of one or a plurality of associated listed items.

Also, ‘upper’, ‘upward’, ‘lower’, and ‘downward’ used herein refer to avertical direction of an air conditioner in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure shown in FIG. 1. That is, a side onwhich a suction port of the air conditioner is provided is referred toas a lower side and a side thereabove is referred to as an upper side.

Also, the embodiment is not to be limited to one embodiment of thepresent disclosure but may be applied to an air conditioner whichincludes blades.

Also, the air conditioner in accordance with one embodiment of thepresent disclosure includes a heat exchanger in an annular shape but isnot limited thereto and may be applied to air conditioners which includeheat exchangers in a quadrangular shape or various shapes.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described indetail with reference to the attached drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an indoor unit of the air conditioner inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is across-sectional view illustrating a portion taken along line I-I shownin FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the air conditionerin accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 4 is arear view illustrating a state in which a second lower housing of theair conditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the presentdisclosure is removed. FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a part shown inFIG. 2.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 5, a schematic configuration of the airconditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosurewill be described.

An indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner may be installed on a ceiling L.At least a portion of the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner may beembedded in the ceiling L.

The indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner includes a housing 10 whichincludes a suction port 110 and a discharge port 33, a heat exchanger 80provided inside the housing 10, and an air blowing fan 40 which movesair.

The housing 10 may have an approximately circular shape when viewed fromabove or below. The housing 10 may include an upper housing 20 disposedinside the ceiling L and a lower housing 30 coupled below the upperhousing 20.

A suction panel 100 which includes the suction port 110 through whichair is suctioned may be provided in a central portion of the lowerhousing 30, and the discharge port 33 through which the air isdischarged may be formed outside the suction port 110 in a radialdirection. The discharge port 33 may have an approximately circularshape when viewed from above or below.

The lower housing 30 may include a first lower housing 31 which iscoupled with the upper housing 20 and forms the discharge port 33 and asecond lower housing 32 which covers a lower side of the first lowerhousing 31.

As shown in FIG. 5, the first lower housing 31 may include threecomponents. However, it may be provided with a plurality of componentsfor ease of assembly in a process but may be formed as a singlecomponent.

In the structure described above, the indoor unit 1 of the airconditioner may suction air from a lower side to cool or heat and maydischarge the air through the lower side.

A filter 120 may be coupled with an upper side of the suction panel 100to filter out dust from the air suctioned through the suction port 110.

The heat exchanger 80 may have an approximately circular shape whenviewed from above or below.

The heat exchanger 80 may be disposed at a drain tray 90 to allowcondensed water generated by the heat exchanger 80 to be collected atthe drain tray 90.

The air blowing fan 40 may be provided inside the heat exchanger 80 in aradial direction. The air blowing fan 40 may be a centrifugal fan whichsuctions air in an axial direction and discharges the air in the radialdirection. The indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner may include an airblowing motor 41 for driving the air blowing fan 40.

Due to the components described above, the indoor unit 1 of the airconditioner may suction, cool, and discharge indoor air into a room ormay suction, heat, and discharge indoor air into the room

The indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner further includes an air flowcontroller 50 which controls a discharged air flow.

The air flow controller 50 may suction air around the discharge port 33and change a pressure thereof, and thereby control a direction of thedischarged air flow. Also, the air flow controller 50 may control asuction rate of the air around the discharge port 33. That is, the airflow controller 50 may control the direction of the discharged air flowby controlling the suction rate of the air around the discharge port 33.

Here, the controlling of the direction of the discharged air flow refersto controlling an angle of the discharged air flow.

The air flow controller 50 may suction the air from one side of amovement direction of the discharged air flow when suctioning the airaround the discharge port 33.

That is, as shown in FIG. 5, when the movement direction of thedischarged air flow while the air flow controller 50 does not operate isa direction A1, the air flow controller 50 operates and suctions the airfrom one side of the direction A1, thereby switching the movementdirection of the discharged air flow into a direction A2.

Here, an angle to be switched may be adjusted according to a suctionrate. That is, switching may be performed at a small angle when thesuction rate is low and may be performed at a large angle when thesuction rate is high.

The air flow controller 50 may discharge the suctioned air toward anopposite side of the movement direction A1 of the discharged air flow.Thereby, the angle of the discharged air flow may become larger and anair flow may be more smoothly controlled.

The air flow controller 50 may suction air at the outside of thedischarge port 33 in a radial direction. As described above, since theair flow controller 50 suctions the air at the outside of the dischargeport 33 in the radial direction, the discharged air flow may widelyspread from a central portion of the discharge port 33 to the outside inthe radial direction.

The air flow controller 50 includes an air flow controlling fan 60 whichgenerates a suction force for suctioning the air around the dischargeport 33, an air flow controlling motor 61 for driving the air flowcontrolling fan 60, and a guide flow path 70 which guides the airsuctioned by the air flow controlling fan 60.

The air flow controlling fan 60 may be accommodated inside the lowerhousing 30. In detail, the air flow controlling fan 60 may be providedin an internal space of the lower housing 30 formed by the first lowerhousing 31 and the second lower housing 32.

In the embodiment, three such air flow controlling fans 60 are providedat angles of 120 degrees, but the number thereof is not limited thereto.The number and arrangement of the air flow controlling fans 60 may bevariously designed.

Also, in the embodiment, the air flow controlling fan 60 is acentrifugal fan, but is not limited thereto, and may be one of variousfans such as an axial flow fan, a cross flow fan, a diagonal flow fan,etc. according to design specifications.

The guide flow path 70 connects an inlet 71 which suctions the airaround the discharge port 33 with an outlet 72 which discharges thesuctioned air.

The inlet 71 may be formed on an outer circumferential surface of thedischarge port 33, and the outlet 72 may be provided on an innercircumferential surface of the discharge port 33 opposite to the inlet71. That is, the inlet 71 and the outlet 72 may be provided on the lowerhousing 30 which forms the discharge port 33.

Due to these components, as described above, the air flow controller 50may discharge suctioned air to the opposite side of the movementdirection A1 of the discharged air flow, may increase the angle of thedischarged air flow, and may more smoothly control an air flow.

The guide flow path 70 may include a first flow path 70 a formed in acircumferential direction of the lower housing 30 and connected to theinlet 71, a second flow path 70 b which extends from the first flow path70 a to an inside in a radial direction, and a third flow path 70 cformed in an area in which the air flow controller 60 is mounted.

Accordingly, air suctioned through the inlet 71 may pass through thefirst flow path 70 a, the second flow path 70 b, and the third flow path70 c and may be discharged through the outlet 72.

However, such a structure of the guide flow path 70 is merely an exampleand the guide flow path 70 is not limited in structure, shape, andarrangement while connecting the inlet 71 with the outlet 72.

Due to these components, an indoor unit of an air conditioner inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure may control adischarged air flow without a blade structure in comparison to aconventional structure which includes a blade in a discharge port andcontrols a discharged air flow by rotating the blade. Accordingly, as aninterruption caused by a blade is absent, a discharge rate may increaseand a flow noise may be reduced.

Also, the discharge port of the indoor unit of the conventional airconditioner has to have a linear shape to rotate the blade. Thedischarge port of the indoor unit of the air conditioner in accordancewith the embodiment of the present disclosure may be provided in acircular shape.

Also, the discharge port of the indoor unit of the conventional airconditioner has to have a linear shape to rotate the blade. However, thedischarge port of the indoor unit of the air conditioner in accordancewith the embodiment of the present disclosure may be provided in acircular shape. Accordingly, since the housing, the heat exchanger, etc.may also be provided in circular shapes, aesthetic properties mayincrease due to a differentiated design. Also, considering that a shapeof the air blowing fan is generally circular, an air flow may naturallyflow and a loss in pressure may be reduced and cooling or heatingproperties of the air conditioner may be increased.

Hereinafter, the suction panel 100 and combination and separationbetween the suction panel 100 and the lower housing 30 will be describedin detail.

FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a shape of a separated suction panel ofthe air conditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 7 is a rear view of the air conditioner in accordancewith one embodiment of the present disclosure from which the suctionpanel is removed. FIG. 8 is a top view of the suction panel of the airconditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure.FIG. 9 is a view of a coupling member of the air conditioner inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 10 is aview illustrating a state in which the filter is coupled with thecoupling member of the air conditioner in accordance with one embodimentof the present disclosure. FIG. 11 is a view of the coupling portion ofthe air conditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view of the lower housingof the air conditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 13 is a view of a supporting unit of the airconditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 6, the suction panel 100 may be rotated with respect tothe lower housing 30 and may be separably coupled with the lower housing30. That is, when a user applies a force which rotates the suction panel100 in an axial direction of the air blowing fan 40 or rotates itclockwise or counterclockwise with the vertical direction of the indoorunit 1 of the air conditioner as an axis, the suction panel 100 may berotated in a force-applied direction and may be separated from orcoupled with the lower housing 30.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, when thesuction panel 100 is rotated clockwise on a rotation axis of the airblowing fan 40 based in a direction in which the user faces the indoorunit 1 of the air conditioner installed in the ceiling L, the suctionpanel 100 may be coupled with the lower housing 30. When rotatedcounterclockwise, the suction panel 100 may be separated from the lowerhousing 30. However, combination and separation are not limited thereto,and combination and separation may be performed by applying the force inthe opposite direction.

As shown in FIGS. 7 to 12, a coupling member 130 to be coupled with thelower housing 30 may be provided above the suction panel 100 and acoupling portion 35 provided on a side corresponding to the couplingmember 130 may be provided at the lower housing 30.

There may be two or more of each of the coupling member 130 and thecoupling portion 35 corresponding thereto, and more preferably, aplurality of such coupling members 130 and a plurality of couplingportions 35 may be arranged on an inner surface adjacent to a rim of thesuction panel 100 in a circumferential direction of the suction panel100.

Hereinafter, a single unit of each of the plurality of coupling members130 and the plurality of coupling portions 35 will be described. Sincethe plurality of coupling members 130 and the plurality of couplingportions 35 are provided in the same shapes, a description of theplurality thereof will be omitted.

The coupling member 130 may be provided as a protrusion which protrudesupward. In detail, the coupling member 130 may include a first hook 131inserted into and supported by the coupling portion 35.

The first hook 131 may include a guide surface 132, which guides thefirst hook 131 to be inserted into the coupling portion 35 and has around shape, and an insertion protrusion 133, which laterally extendsfrom the guide surface 132 and is inserted into and hook-coupled withthe coupling portion 35.

The coupling portion 35 may be concavely formed inside the lower housing30 to allow the first hook 131 to be inserted into the lower housing 30.In detail, the coupling portion 35 may include a guide groove 36provided to be in contact with the insertion protrusion 133 and theguide surface 132 while being coupled with the first hook 131 to allowthe insertion protrusion 133 to be inserted into the coupling portion35, an insertion groove 37 into which the guided insertion protrusion133 is inserted, and a supporting step 38 with which the insertionprotrusion 133 inserted into the insertion groove 37 is hook-coupled tobe supported thereby.

The guide groove 36 may allow the coupling member 130 to be easilyinserted into the coupling portion 35 when the user couples the suctionpanel 100 with the lower housing 30. For this, the guide groove 36 mayhave a larger width than a width of the guide surface 132, and may beconcavely provided.

Also, the guide groove 36 may extend toward the insertion groove 37 in acurved shape to allow the insertion protrusion 133 and the guide surface132 to be easily moved to the insertion groove 37 while in contact witheach other.

As described above, when the user rotates the suction panel 100clockwise, the insertion protrusion 133 may be guided by the guidegroove 36, inserted into the insertion groove 37, and hook-coupled withthe supporting step 38, thereby allowing the suction panel 100 to becoupled with the lower housing 30.

On the other hand, when the user rotates the suction panel 100counterclockwise, the insertion protrusion 133 may be separated from thesupporting step 38 and sequentially withdrawn from the insertion groove37 and the guide groove 36, thereby allowing the suction panel 100 to beseparated from the lower housing 30.

When the suction panel 100 is provided as a circular shape like oneembodiment of the present disclosure, since the user may separate andcouple the suction panel 100 from and with the housing 10 by rotatingthe circular suction panel 100, the suction panel 100 may be intuitivelydetached or attached using the circular shape, thereby providingconvenience to the user.

The circular suction panel 100 may not only be applied to the indoorunit 1 of the air conditioner including the heat exchanger 80 providedin an annular shape like in the embodiment of the present disclosure butalso be applied to cases of the heat exchanger 80 provided in aquadrangular shape or in various shapes and may be separated from thehousing 10 through rotation and recoupled with the housing 10 throughrotation as described above.

As shown in FIG. 12, the insertion groove 37 and the supporting step 38may be provided at the first lower housing 31 and the guide groove 36may be provided at the second lower housing 32. This is to providerigidity against a long-time stress which may occur at the insertiongroove 37 and the supporting step 38 when the suction panel 100 ishook-coupled for a long time.

Three of the first lower housings 31, as shown in FIG. 5, may beseparably formed. However, in FIG. 12, for convenience of description,among a plurality of such lower housings 31, only one first lowerhousing 31 disposed above is shown while two other first lower housings31 are omitted.

The first lower housing 31, which will be described below, is the onefirst lower housing 31 disposed above shown in FIG. 12 among a pluralityof first lower housings 31 shown in FIG. 5. However, the plurality offirst lower housings 31, unlike one embodiment of the presentdisclosure, may be separably provided, but are not limited thereto, andmay be injection-molded as a single housing.

The first lower housing 31 may be coupled with the drain tray 90 insidethe upper housing 20 to provide rigidity against gravity. However, sincethe second lower housing 32 is a component which covers the first lowerhousing 31 at the lower side thereof and is supported by the first lowerhousing 31, rigidity thereof against a stress may be lower than that ofthe first lower housing 31.

Accordingly, the second lower housing 32 may include the guide groove 36and a through hole 32 a to expose the insertion groove 37 and thesupporting step 38 below the lower housing 30.

However, when the second lower housing 32 has a certain level ofrigidity, the insertion groove 37 and the supporting step 38 may beintegrally provided at the second lower housing 32. Here, the lowerhousing 30 may not include the through hole 32 a.

The coupling member 130 may include a second hook which faces inward inthe radial direction of the suction panel 100. In detail, the secondhook 135 may be provided on a side of the coupling member 130, whichextends toward the guide surface 132, and may be provided toward acentral portion of a radius of the suction panel 100.

As described above, the filter 120 may be disposed on an upper surfaceof the suction panel 100 at which an outer circumferential surface ofthe filter 120 may be hook-coupled with the second hook 135 to besupported by the suction panel 100.

As the second hook 135 is provided on one side of the coupling member130, the suction panel 100 does not need an additional component forsupporting a filter, thereby simplifying a process and reducingmanufacturing costs.

The user may rotate the suction panel 100 to separate it from thehousing 10 and then may easily separate the filter 120 from the suctionpanel 100 by pressurizing the filter 120 coupled with the second hook135.

Since the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner is embedded in theceiling, when the user separates the suction panel 100 from the ceiling,a safety accident such as falling of the suction panel 100 may occur dueto a mistake of the user. To prevent this, the suction panel 100 mayinclude a supporting unit 140 provided to allow the suction panel 100 tobe supported by the housing 10 while the suction panel 100 is separatedfrom the housing 10.

The supporting unit 140 may connect the upper side of the suction panel100 with the lower side of the lower housing 30 to allow the suctionpanel 100 to be supported by the lower housing 30 at a certain intervaltherebetween after being separated from the lower housing 30.

As shown in FIG. 13, the supporting unit 140 may include a connectingmember 141 which connects the suction panel 100 with the lower housing30, a first connecting groove 142 provided at the suction panel 100, anda second connecting groove 143 provided at the lower housing 30.

The connecting member 141 may be formed of a material includingflexibility such as a wire, and may be disposed to be bent between thesuction panel 100 and the lower housing 30 when the suction panel 100 iscoupled with the lower housing 30.

The connecting member 141 may allow the suction panel 100 to verticallyextend due to tension generated between the lower housing 30 and thesuction panel 100 and to be supported by the lower housing 30 when thesuction panel 100 is separated.

The connecting member 141 may include a material having rigidity capableof supporting gravity acting on the suction panel 100.

The first connecting groove 142 may be formed at the suction panel 100and coupled with one side of the connecting member 141. In detail, thefirst connecting groove 142 may be provided at one side of the guidesurface 132 of the coupling member 130, but is not limited thereto, andmay be provided at one side of the upper surface of the suction panel100.

The second connecting groove 143 may be formed at the lower side of thelower housing 30 and may be coupled with the other side of theconnecting member 141. The second connecting groove 143, as shown inFIG. 12, like the insertion groove 37 and the supporting step 38, mayextend from the first lower housing 31 and may protrude below the secondlower housing 32, but is not limited thereto, and may be provided at thesecond lower housing 32.

Hereinafter, a supporting unit 240 in accordance with another embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. Hereinafter, sincecomponents other than a suction panel 200 and the supporting unit 240 tobe described below are identical to components of one embodimentdescribed above, a description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 14 is an exploded perspective view of a supporting unit of an airconditioner in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 15 is a side cross-sectional view schematicallyillustrating the air conditioner in accordance with another embodimentof the present disclosure. FIG. 16 is a side cross-sectional viewschematically illustrating a state in which a suction panel of the airconditioner in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure is coupled with a housing.

As shown in FIG. 14, the supporting unit 240 may include a link member241 which connects the lower housing 30 with the suction panel 200, afirst slide slot 242 disposed at the suction panel 200, and a secondslide slot 243 disposed at the lower housing 30.

The link member 241 may slide toward and be rotatably coupled with eachof the lower housing 30 and the suction panel 200.

Slide protrusions 244 which are inserted into the first and second slideslots 242 and 243 and slide may be provided at both ends of the linkmember 241.

The slide protrusions 244 may slide in the first and second slide slots242 and 243 when the suction panel 200 is rotated, and may rotate withrespect to the first and second slide slots 242 and 243 to allow thelink member 242 to pivot when the suction panel 200 is separated.

As shown in FIG. 16, when the suction panel 200 is coupled with thelower housing 30, the link member 241 may be provided between thesuction panel 200 and the lower housing 30 while being disposed in adirection perpendicular to a vertical direction.

After that, the slide protrusions 244 may slide in the first and secondslide slots 242 and 243 in a direction being pressurized when thesuction panel 200 is rotated and may slide according to rotation of thesuction panel 200.

When the rotation of the suction panel 200 is finished, the couplingmember 130 is withdrawn from the coupling portion 35 to be separable.Here, the link member 241 may support the suction panel 200 while beingdisposed toward the vertical direction to support the suction panel 200at a certain interval from the lower housing 30.

The slide protrusions 244 rotate while being inserted into the first andsecond slide slots 242 and 243 to allow the link member 241 to bedisposed in the vertical direction. The slide protrusions 244 may notonly rotate but also continuously slide in the first and second slideslots 242 and 243 when the suction panel 200 is separated.

The suction panel 200 may be supported by the lower housing 30 whilebeing spaced apart as much as a length of the link member 241.

Hereinafter, a suction panel 300 in accordance with another embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. Hereinafter, sincecomponents in addition to the suction panel 300, a coupling member 330,and a supporting unit 340 to be described below are identical tocomponents of one embodiment described above, a description thereof willbe omitted.

FIG. 17 is an exploded perspective view of a supporting unit of an airconditioner in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 18 is a side cross-sectional view schematicallyillustrating a suction panel of the air conditioner in accordance withanother embodiment of the present disclosure when being separated. FIG.19 is a side cross-sectional view schematically illustrating the suctionpanel of the air conditioner in accordance with another embodiment ofthe present disclosure when being coupled.

As shown in FIG. 17, the suction panel 300 may be rotated in a directionperpendicular to the rotation axis of the air blowing fan 40 as arotation axis to be separated from and coupled with the housing 10. Indetail, when the user pressurizes the suction panel 300 in a lower-sidedirection of the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner, the suction panel300 may rotate in the lower-side direction, which is the direction beingpressurized, and may be separated from the lower housing 30.

That is, unlike a method of pressurizing the suction panel 100,200 bythe user in a circumferential direction of the suction panel 100,200 inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure shown in FIGS.6 to 16, the suction panel 300,400 in accordance with another embodimentof the present disclosure shown in FIGS. 17 to 19, and 20 to 22 may bepressurized downward to be separated from the lower housing 30 and maybe pressurized upward to be coupled with the lower housing 30.

The coupling member 330 which connects the suction panel 300 with thelower housing 30 for coupling and separating them with or from eachother may be provided between the suction panel 300 and the lowerhousing 30.

The coupling member 330 may include a hook portion 331 provided at thesuction panel 300 and a hook supporting portion (not shown) provided atthe lower housing 30 to allow the hook portion 331 to be inserted andsupported.

Two such hook portions 331 may be provided as shown in FIG. 17, but thehook portions are not limited thereto, and may be provided as a singlehook portion or three or more hook portions. The hook portion 331 may beinserted into and hook-coupled with the hook supporting portion when thesuction panel 300 is coupled with the lower housing 30.

When the user pressurizes the suction panel 300 downward, the hookportion 331 may depart from the hook supporting portion in such a waythat hook-coupling may be released and the suction panel 300 may berotated downward.

The supporting unit 340 may include a link member 341 which supports thesuction panel 300 at a certain interval from the lower housing 30 toallow the suction panel 300 to be rotated while being spaced apart atthe certain interval from the lower housing 30, a rotation-couplingportion 342 provided to allow the suction panel 300 to be verticallyrotated, a rotating portion 344 which allows the link member 341 to berotatable with respect to the lower housing 30, and a hinge member 343which limits a movement of the link member 341 to allow the link member341 to support the suction panel 300 while maintaining the certaininterval.

The link member 341 may include an annular shape corresponding to a rimof the suction panel 300. In detail, the link member 341 may be formedin an annular shape of a semicircular shape of the suction panel 300.

Rotating portions 344 to be coupled with the lower housing 30 may beprovided at both ends of the annular shape of the semicircular shape ofthe link member 341 to allow the link member 341 to be rotatably coupledwith the lower housing 30. Also, a rotation-coupling portion 342 to becoupled with the suction panel 300 and provided to allow the suctionpanel 300 to be rotatably coupled with respect to the link member 341may be disposed at a central portion of the link member 341.

That is, the link member 341 may be rotatably coupled with each of thelower housing 30 and the suction panel 300.

Accordingly, when the user pressurizes the suction panel 300 downward,the link member 341 may be interconnected with the suction panel 300,may rotate with respect to the lower housing 30, and may be moved belowthe lower housing 30 together with the suction panel 300. The linkmember 341 may support the suction panel 300 at an interval from thelower housing 30 as much as a moved distance below the lower housing 30.

The suction panel 300 may be moved by the link member 341 by a certaindistance below and may be rotated with respect to the link member 341 bythe rotation-coupling portion 342. The suction panel 300 may verticallyrotate on the rotation-coupling portion 342 as a rotation axis.

The hinge member 343 may limit a movement of the link member 341 byconnecting the lower housing 30 with a center of the link member 341,that is, a portion adjacent to the rotation-coupling portion 342.

The hinge member 343 may be provided between the lower housing 30 andthe suction panel 300 while being folded when the suction panel 300 iscoupled with the lower housing 30, and may be extended downward whilebeing interconnected with the link member 341 when the suction panel 300is pressurized downward.

As described above, the hinge member 343 may limit the rotation of thelink member 341 to allow the link member 341 to support the suctionpanel 300 while keeping the certain interval from the lower housing 30.

Here, when a distance between the rotation-coupling portion 342 and thelower housing 30 maintained by the hinge member 343 is referred to as L1and a distance between an outer circumferential surface of the suctionpanel 300 and the rotation-coupling portion 342 is referred to as L2, itis necessary that a length of L1 is greater than a length of L2 to allowrotation of the suction panel 300 not to be limited by the lower housing30 when it is rotating.

Accordingly, the hinge member 343 may support the link member 341 toallow the length of L1 to be greater than the length of L2. That is, itis necessary that the distance between the rotation-coupling portion 342and the lower housing 30 is at least identical to the length of L2 whenthe hinge member 343 extends downward by a maximal length.

Unlike the coupling member 130 in accordance with one embodiment of thepresent disclosure, since the coupling member 330 in accordance withanother embodiment of the present disclosure does not include the secondhook 135, the filter 120 may be disposed on an upper surface of thesuction panel 300 while including coupling components in addition to thecoupling member 330. However, the coupling member 330 in accordance withanother embodiment of the present disclosure is not limited to thedrawings and may include the second hook 135, and accordingly additionalmay not include additional components.

Here, it is necessary to dispose the coupling member 330 to be incontact with a side on which an outer surface of the filter 120 isdisposed. Also, it is necessary to provide at least two coupling members330 to restrict the outer circumferential surface of the filter 120.

Hereinafter, a suction panel 400 in accordance with another embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. Hereinafter, sincecomponents other than the suction panel 400 and a supporting unit 440 tobe described below are identical to components of one embodimentdescribed above, a description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 20 is a perspective view illustrating a suction panel of an airconditioner in accordance with another embodiment of the presentdisclosure when being separated. FIG. 21 is a side cross-sectional viewschematically illustrating the suction panel of the air conditioner inaccordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure when beingseparated.

As shown in FIG. 20, the suction panel 400 may be rotated in a directionperpendicular to the rotation axis of the air blowing fan 40 as arotation axis to be separated from and coupled with the housing 10. Indetail, when the user pressurizes the suction panel 400 in a lower-sidedirection of the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner, the suction panel400 may rotate in the lower-side direction, which is the direction beingpressurized, and may be separated from the lower housing 30.

To allow the suction panel 400 to be rotated while being supported bythe lower housing 30, the supporting unit 440 may be provided.

The supporting unit 440 may include a hinge member 441 which connectsthe lower housing 30 with the suction panel 400, a rotating portion 442which allows the hinge member 441 to be rotatably coupled with the lowerhousing 30, and a rotation-coupling portion 443 which allows the suctionpanel 400 to be rotatably coupled with respect to the hinge member 441.

The hinge member 441 may be disposed between the suction panel 400 andthe lower housing 30 while being folded when the suction panel 400 iscoupled with the lower housing 30, and may be extended downward whilebeing interconnected with the suction panel 400 when the suction panel400 is pressurized downward.

Here, the hinge member 441 is extended downward and supports the suctionpanel 400 while being spaced apart therefrom. When a distance betweenthe lower housing 30 on which the hinge member 441 is provided whileextended and the rotation-coupling portion 443 is referred to as L1 anda distance between an outer circumferential surface of the suction panel400 and the rotation-coupling portion 443 is referred to as L2, it isnecessary that a length of L1 is greater than a length of L2 to allowrotation of the suction panel 400 not to be limited by the lower housing30 while rotating.

Accordingly, the hinge member 441 may support the suction panel 400 toallow the length of L1 to be greater than the length of L2. That is, itis necessary that the distance between the rotation-coupling portion 443and the lower housing 30 is at least identical to the length of L2 whenthe hinge member 441 is extended downward by a maximal length.

Hereinafter, a suction panel 500 in accordance with another embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. Hereinafter, sincecomponents other than the suction panel 500 and a supporting unit 540 tobe described below are identical to components of the embodimentdescribed above, a description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 22 is a view illustrating a suction panel of an air conditioner inaccordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure when beingseparated.

As shown in FIG. 22, the suction panel 500 may be rotated in a directionperpendicular to the rotation axis of the air blowing fan 40 as arotation axis to be separated from and coupled with the housing 10. Indetail, when the user pressurizes the suction panel 500 in a lower-sidedirection of the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner, the suction panel500 may rotate in the lower-side direction, which is the direction beingpressurized, and may be separated from the lower housing 30.

To allow the suction panel 500 to be rotated while being supported bythe lower housing 30, the supporting unit 540 may be provided.

To allow one side of an outer circumferential surface of the supportingunit 540 to be hinge-coupled with one end of the lower housing 30, thesuction panel 500 and the lower housing 30 may be coupled through ahinge portion.

Accordingly, when the user pressurizes the suction panel 500 downward,the suction panel may rotate downward on a hinge axis of the supportingunit 540 as a rotation axis.

Hereinafter, a cover member 600 and a coupling of the cover member 600with the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner will be described indetail.

FIG. 23 is a view illustrating a state in which a cover member inaccordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure is separated.FIG. 24 is a partial view illustrating a state in which the airconditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosureis coupled. FIG. 25 is a partial enlarged top view of the cover memberin accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 26 isa view illustrating a rotation state of the cover member in accordancewith one embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 1, the cover member 600 which covers an outerperimeter of the lower housing 30 may be disposed at a lowermost portionof the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner. Auxiliary cover members 650separably disposed from the cover member 600 may be provided at fourrectangular corners of the cover member 600.

The auxiliary cover members 650 to be described below may be providedseparably from the cover member 600 to cover a coupled portion formed byscrew-coupling an auxiliary coupling member 610 with the cover member600 after the cover member 600 is hook-coupled with the indoor unit 1 ofthe air conditioner, particularly, with the drain tray 90.

Also, the cover member 600 may include through portions 620 whichinclude openings to allow the user to easily work through the covermember 600 when the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner is installed inthe ceiling at the four rectangular corners, and the auxiliary covermembers 650 may cover a coupled portion of the cover member 600 and theindoor unit 1 of the air conditioner and the through portions 620.

That is, the auxiliary cover members 650 may be separated to allow theuser to work while the cover member 600 is coupled or the indoor unit 1of the air conditioner is mounted. When the work is finished, theauxiliary cover members 650 may be coupled with the cover member 600 tocover the four rectangular corners of the cover member 600.

The cover member 600, the lower housing 30, the drain tray 90, and theupper housing 20 are layered from a lower side of the indoor unit 1 ofthe air conditioner to be coupled.

In the case of a conventional air conditioner, in detail, in the case ofa type of air conditioner controlling a discharged air flow using ageneral blade, a cover member, a drain tray, and a housing may belayered from a lower side. In the case of the air conditioner inaccordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure, since the airflow controller is provided below the drain tray instead of including ablade, the number of additionally layered components such as theplurality of lower housings 30 is larger than the conventional airconditioner. Accordingly, it may be difficult to couple respectivecomponents.

Particularly, it is difficult to assemble layered components with oneanother due to the large number thereof. Since each of components isformed of an injection-molded product generally including plasticproperties, when components are assembled with one another, they may beeasily damaged by contact thereamong even due to a minor shock, therebydeteriorating durability of the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner.

Accordingly, to overcome this, as shown in FIG. 24, the respectivecomponents are not coupled with one another, but may be coupled with theauxiliary coupling member 610 to increase the durability.

The auxiliary coupling member 610 may be extended in a verticaldirection of an outer circumferential surface of the indoor unit 1 ofthe air conditioner, and may include a material having high strengthsuch as steel.

The lower housing 30 and the drain tray 90 may respectively include afirst assembling portion 39 and a second assembling portion 95 whichprotrude outward from the outer circumferential surface. The firstassembling portion 39 and the second assembling portion 95 may belayered and coupled with the auxiliary coupling member 610.

The cover member 600 may include a coupling slit 630 to be screw-coupledtogether with the first assembling portion 39 and the second assemblingportion 95 may be provided at each of the four rectangular cornerscorresponding to the first assembling portion 39 and the secondassembling portion 95. This will be described in detail below.

Also, as the auxiliary coupling member 610 is inserted into the upperhousing 20, the upper housing 20 may be coupled by the auxiliarycoupling member 610.

The cover member 600 may be pressurized toward the indoor unit 1 of theair conditioner and may be coupled with the indoor unit 1 of the airconditioner. In detail, the cover member 600 may be pressurized upwardand may be hook-coupled with the second assembling portion 95.

The cover member 600 may include a coupling hook 640 which protrudestoward the drain tray 90, and a recessed portion 96 to be coupled withthe coupling hook 640 may be provided at the second assembling portion95.

The second assembling portion 95 may include a coupling surface 95 a,which protrudes in a radial direction of the drain tray 90 and isscrew-coupled with the first assembling portion 39 and the auxiliarycoupling member 610, and an extension surface 95 b, which is extendedupward along an outer perimeter of the coupling surface 95 a.

The first assembling portion 39 may be disposed at a lower surface ofthe coupling surface 95 a and the auxiliary coupling member 610 may bedisposed at an upper surface thereof to be screw-coupled while beinglayered. The recessed portion 96 may be provided at one side of theextension surface 95 b, and may be hook-coupled with the coupling hook640.

However, the recessed portion 96 is not limited to one embodiment of thepresent disclosure and may be disposed at the first assembling portion39. Here, the first assembling portion 39 may include a coupling portionand an extension surface, and the second assembling portion 95 may bedisposed on an upper surface of the first assembling portion 39 and maybe screw-coupled with the auxiliary coupling member 610 disposed abovethe first assembling portion 39.

When the cover member 600 is pressurized upward, the coupling hook 640may be moved upward, may be guided along an upper side of the extensionsurface 95 b, and may arrive at and be hook-coupled with the recessedportion 96.

Due to the coupling hook 640, the user may easily couple the covermember 600 with the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner only byperforming an operation of pressurizing the cover member 600 upward.

In the case of a conventional air conditioner, it is necessary that oneuser supports a cover member not to fall and another user couples thecover member to fix the cover member, which is inconvenient. The covermember 600 in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosuremay be fixed to the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner by simplypressurizing the cover member 600 upward.

In a process of coupling the cover member 600, first the auxiliary covermember 650 pressurizes the cover member 600 in a separate state towardthe indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner to allow the coupling hook 640to be hook-coupled with the recessed portion 96.

After that, the user may insert a screw into the coupling slit 630provided at the cover member 600, and may screw-couple the cover member600, the first and second assembling portions 39 and 95, and theauxiliary coupling member 610 while they are layered.

Although described below, the coupling slit 630 is slidable with respectto the screw and may adjust an angle of coupling the cover member 600 byrotating the cover member 600. After coupling is completed, theauxiliary cover member 650 may be coupled with the cover member 600,thereby finishing the process of coupling the cover member 600.

When the cover member 600 is separated, the user may separate theauxiliary cover member 650, may remove the screw from the coupling slit630, and may disassemble a hook-coupled state of the coupling hook 640through the through portion 620, thereby separating the cover member600.

Here, even when the screw is removed from the coupling slit 630, it ispossible to prevent the cover member 600 from suddenly falling since thecover member 600 is hook-coupled with the drain tray 90.

The coupling hook 640 may include a disassembling rib 647 which allowsthe user to pressurize one side of the coupling hook 640 to easilydisassemble the hook-coupled state. The disassembling rib 647 may beprovided to be extended upward from an upper end of the coupling hook640 to allow the user to easily disassemble hook-coupling by pulling thedisassembling rib 647 in the radial direction of the drain tray 90through the through portion 620.

Although not shown in the drawings, in order to easily disassemble thehook coupling, a holding portion may be provided at one side of thecoupling hook 640 and an incised portion may be provided at one side ofthe cover member 600 corresponding to the holding portion to allow athin shaft such as a screw driver to pass through the cover member 600and to arrive at the holding portion.

Here, the user may insert the shaft into the incised portion, may allowthe shaft passing through the cover member 600 to be held by the holdingportion, and may bend the shaft back in the radial direction of thedrain tray 90. Accordingly, the coupling hook 640 may be interconnectedwith a movement of the shaft and may be bent back in a direction ofdeparting from the recessed portion 96, thereby releasing the hookcoupling.

As shown in FIG. 25, the coupling slit 630 may be disposed in an area atwhich the cover member 600 is covered by the auxiliary cover member 650.

The screw is inserted into the coupling slit 630 to allow the covermember 600 to be screw-coupled with the auxiliary coupling member 610. Alongitudinal portion 631 may be provided to allow the coupling slit 630to be slidable with respect to the screw after the screw is coupled.

In detail, as shown in FIG. 26, after the cover member 600 isscrew-coupled with the auxiliary coupling member 610, the user maydispose the cover member 600 by rotating the cover member 600 on therotation axis of the air blowing fan 40 clockwise or counterclockwise toadjust the angle of coupling the cover member 600

The user may rotate the cover member 600 to adjust verticality andhorizontality between a ceiling surface at which the indoor unit 1 ofthe air conditioner is installed and the cover member 600.

That is, when the cover member 600 is pressurized clockwise orcounterclockwise, the coupling slit 630 may reciprocate a distancebetween one end and the other end of the longitudinal portion 631 withrespect to the screw while sliding. Accordingly, the cover member 600may be rotated as much as a length of the longitudinal portion 631.

Also, when the cover member 600 is rotated, the coupling hook 640coupled with the recessed portion 96 also may be rotated clockwise orcounterclockwise while being interconnected with the cover member 600.Accordingly, a width of the recessed portion 96 may be larger than awidth of the coupling hook 640 in order not to limit the rotation of thecover member 600.

A difference between the widths of the recessed portion 96 and thecoupling hook 640 may be at least identical to a length of the rotationof the cover member 600 through sliding of the coupling slit 630.

However, since the coupling hook 640 is hook-coupled with the recessedportion 96 before the screw is assembled with the coupling slit 630 andthe width of the recessed portion 96 is larger than the width of thecoupling hook 640, the cover member 600 may rotate with respect to thehousing 10 as much as the difference between the widths of the recessedportion 96 and the coupling hook 640.

Accordingly, the cover member 600 may be rotatably coupled with thehousing 10 at a certain interval regardless of whether the screw isinserted into the coupling slit 630.

The cover member 600 may support the auxiliary cover member 650 whilebeing spaced apart using a wire to prevent the auxiliary cover member650 from falling when the auxiliary cover member 650 is separated.

That is, a wire binding portion 621 capable of binding the wire isprovided at one side of the cover member 600 in such a way that one sideof the wire is bound to the wire binding portion 621 and the other sideof the wire is connected to one side of the auxiliary cover member 650to prevent the auxiliary cover member 650 from falling while beingseparated.

In detail, the wire binding portion 621 may protrude toward an inside ofthe through portion 620. The wire binding portion 621 is formed in ahook shape at the through portion 620 in such a way that the user mayeasily bind the wire to connect the cover member 600 with the auxiliarycover member using the wire.

Also, the wire binding portion 621 may be integrally injection-moldedtogether with the cover member 600 in a shape extended from one side ofthe cover member 600 toward the through portion 620. Accordingly, sincean additional component for preventing the auxiliary cover member 650from falling is unnecessary, the number of components for forming theindoor unit 1 of the air conditioner may be reduced, the process may besimplified, and manufacturing costs may be reduced.

Hereinafter, a coupling hook 640′ in accordance with another embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. Hereinafter, sincecomponents other than the coupling hook 640′ to be described below areidentical to components of one embodiment described above, a descriptionthereof will be omitted.

FIG. 27 is a partial enlarged view of a cover member in accordance withanother embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 28 is a sidecross-sectional view illustrating a state in which the cover member inaccordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure isseparated from the air conditioner.

As shown in FIG. 27, the coupling hook 640′ may be provided in a springholder shape capable of moving forward and backward in the radialdirection of the drain tray 90. A holder 641 of the spring holder ishook-coupled with the recessed portion 96 in such a way that the covermember 600 may be coupled with the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner.

The coupling hook 640′ may include the holder 641 hook-coupled with therecessed portion 96, a guide sloping surface 642 formed on an uppersurface of the holder 641 to guide a reciprocating movement of theholder 641 when the holder 641 is in contact with the first and secondassembling portions 39 and 95, a spring member 643 which allows theholder 641 to reciprocate, and a supporting panel 644 which supports oneside of the spring member 643.

Like the coupling hook 640 in accordance with one embodiment of thepresent disclosure, when the cover member 600 is pressurized upward, thecoupling hook 640′ is hook-coupled with the recessed portion 96 to allowthe cover member 600 to easily be coupled with the drain tray 90.

When the cover member 600 is pressurized upward, the coupling hook 640′may be in contact with one side of each of the first and secondassembling portions 39 and 95 while moving upward. Here, the guidesloping surface 642 is in contact with the one sides of the first andsecond assembling portions 39 and 95. When the cover member 600 iscontinuously pressurized upward while the guide sloping surface 642 isin contact with the one sides of the first and second assemblingportions 39 and 95, the one sides of the first and second assemblingportions 39 and 95 pressurize the holder 641 along the guide slopingsurface 642 in the radial direction of the drain tray 90. Accordingly,the spring member 643 is contracted and the holder 641 moves backward inthe radial direction of the drain tray 90.

After that, when the holder 641 is disposed at a side of the recessedportion 96 due to continuous upward pressurization, the spring member643 is disposed while being spaced apart from the first and secondassembling portions 39 and 95, which pressurize the guide slopingsurface 642, and is extended again, thereby allowing the holder 641 moveinwardly forward in the radial direction of the drain tray 90.

As the holder 641 moves forward, a lower surface of the holder 641 andthe recessed portion 96 are hook-coupled, thereby coupling the covermember 600 with the drain tray 90.

When the coupling hook 640′ is separated from the drain tray 90, theuser may release hook-coupling between the coupling hook 640′ and therecessed portion 96 by pulling a backward movement protrusion 645extended downward from the lower surface of the holder 641 in the radialdirection of the drain tray 90.

The backward movement protrusion 645 may be disposed at the throughportion 620 to be easily gripped by the user through the through portion620.

Hereinafter, a cover member 700 in accordance with another embodiment ofthe present disclosure will be described. Hereinafter, since componentsother than the cover member 700 to be described below are identical tocomponents of one embodiment described above, a description thereof willbe omitted.

FIG. 29 is a view illustrating a state in which a cover member inaccordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure isseparated. FIG. 30 is a view illustrating a state in which the covermember in accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosureis coupled. FIG. 31 is a perspective view of the cover member inaccordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure. FIGS. 32Aand 32B are top views illustrating a state in which the cover member inaccordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure is coupled.

The cover member 600 in accordance with one embodiment of the presentdisclosure shown in FIGS. 1, 3, and 23 to 28 may cover a separatingspace formed between an embedding hole and the housing 10 when theindoor unit 1 of the air conditioner is embedded in the ceiling so asnot to expose the separating space.

In detail, when the housing 10 in accordance with one embodiment of thepresent disclosure is provided in a cylindrical shape and a conventionalembedment hole is provided in a quadrangular shape, a separating spacemay occur between an outer circumferential surface of the housing 10 andcorners of the quadrangular embedding hole. Accordingly, the covermember 600 may be provided in a shape with four rectangular corners, andmay cover the separation space formed at the four rectangular corners.

However, recently, ceiling-installed air conditioners are not installedin embedding holes but a method of installing an air conditioner on aceiling while an indoor unit thereof is entirely exposed is generallyused.

When the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure is installed on the ceiling whilebeing exposed as described above, since the housing 10 is formed in acylindrical shape, it is unnecessary to form the cover member 600 in aquadrangular shape. In addition, as unity is lacking in a design of theindoor unit 1 of the air conditioner formed in a cylindrical shape,aesthetic properties may be deteriorated.

Accordingly, when the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner is installedwhile being exposed, the cover member 700 in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present disclosure shown in FIGS. 28 to 32 may beprovided in an annular shape including a radius corresponding to theouter circumferential surface of the housing 10 to improve the aestheticproperties of the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner.

However, the annular cover member 700 may not only be applied to a caseof being disposed on a ceiling while being exposed, but it may also beapplied to a case of forming a circular embedding hole in the ceiling.

As shown in FIGS. 29 and 30, the cover member 700 may be pressurized bythe user toward the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner to be coupledwith the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner. When the cover member 700is pressurized upward and in contact with one side of the lower housing30 or the drain tray 90, the cover member 700 may be rotated to be fixedto the lower housing 30 or the drain tray 90.

In detail, as shown in FIG. 31, the cover member 700 has a circularopening and a coupling protrusion 710 which protrudes inward in a radialdirection is provided on an inner circumferential surface of the covermember 700. When the coupling protrusion 710 is rotated by the user onthe outer circumferential surface of the drain tray 90 and is thendisposed at a position corresponding to the extension surface 95 b atwhich the recessed portion 96 is disposed, that is, the extensionsurface 95 b disposed on a side facing the outer circumferential surfaceof the drain tray 90 (hereinafter, the extension surface 95 b will bedefined as a first extension surface 95 b′ and the extension surface 95b extended outward from the drain tray 90 at both ends of the firstextension surface 95 b′ will be defined as a second extension surface 95b″), the coupling protrusion 710 may be supported by an upper side ofthe first extension surface 95 b′ to be coupled with the cover member700.

Referring to FIG. 32a , when the coupling protrusion 710 is notsupported by the upper side of the first extension surface 95 b′, acoupling state of the drain tray 90 and the coupling protrusion 710 maynot be maintained and fixed. However, as shown in FIG. 32b , when thecoupling protrusion 710 is rotated along the outer circumferentialsurface of the drain tray 90 and is disposed on the first extensionsurface 95 b′, a lower side of the coupling protrusion 710 is supportedby the first extension surface 95 b′, thereby allowing the cover member700 to be supported by the drain tray 90.

As described above, the recessed portion 96 may be provided in anothercomponent such as the lower housing 30 including an assembled portionnot in the drain tray 90.

As the cover member 700 is provided in an annular shape, the couplingprotrusion 710 protrudes inward along an outer circumferential surfaceto allow the user to naturally rotate the cover member 700 and thecoupling protrusion 710 to be disposed on the first extension surface 95b′. This is so the user may intuitively couple the cover member 700 forconvenience and so that additional components are not required forcoupling the cover member 700 with the indoor unit 1 of the airconditioner to reduce manufacturing costs and to simplify the process.

As shown in FIG. 31, a stopper 720 may be provided at one side of thecoupling protrusion 710. As described above, the coupling protrusion 710is disposed on the first extension surface 95 b′ due to a rotation insuch a way that the cover member 700 is supported by the drain tray 90.Also, when the cover member 700 is separated, the user may separate thecover member 700 by causing the coupling protrusion 710 to depart fromthe first extension surface 95 b′ by rotating-pressurizing.

Here, even when a physical force such as an externally applied force isapplied in a situation where the cover member 700 is not separated, thecover member 700 may be rotated. When the coupling protrusion 710departs from the first extension surface 95 b′ due to the rotation, acoupling of the cover member 700 may be released without an intention todo so.

To prevent this, the stopper 720 may be provided at one side of thecoupling protrusion 710 to prevent the cover member 700 from beingarbitrarily rotated.

The stopper 720 may be extended upward from the one side of the couplingprotrusion 710 and may protrude toward an inside of the cover member700. When the coupling protrusion 710 is disposed on the first extensionsurface 95 b′, the stopper 720 may be disposed corresponding to one sideof the second extension surface 95 b″. Accordingly, even when a rotatingforce is applied to the cover member 700, the stopper 720 is in contactwith the second extension surface 95 b″, thereby limiting the rotationof the cover member 700.

An auxiliary coupling protrusion 730 to be in contact with one side ofthe recessed portion 96 when the coupling protrusion 710 is disposedabove the first extension surface 95 b′ may be provided below thecoupling protrusion 710.

The auxiliary coupling protrusion 730 may protrude toward the inside ofthe cover member 700 and may be extended as much as a lengthapproximately corresponding to a thickness of the first extensionsurface 95 b′. The auxiliary coupling protrusion 730 may be disposed tobe in contact with a side of the recessed portion 96, at which thestopper 720 and the second extension surface 95 b″ are in contact witheach other.

Rotation of the cover member 700 may be limited by the stopper 720 inone direction. However, when rotated in the opposite direction, therotation may not be limited, thereby allowing the coupling protrusion todepart from the first extension surface 95 b′ as described above.

To prevent this, the auxiliary coupling protrusion 730 may be in contactwith one side of the recessed portion 96 to limit the rotation of thecover member 700 in the direction opposite to the stopper 720.

Accordingly, the user may separate the cover member 700 by applying aforce capable of causing the auxiliary coupling protrusion 730 to departfrom the recessed portion 96 only when separating the cover member 700.

The auxiliary coupling protrusion 730 may protrude in a triangular shapein such a way that surfaces in diagonal directions may guide aninsertion into or departure from the recessed portion 96.

Hereinafter, a configuration of the filter 120 will be described indetail.

FIG. 33 is a partial perspective view of a filter in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 34 is a top view of thefilter in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG.35 is a partial enlarged view of the filter in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure.

As described above, the filter 120 may be provided in a circular shape.Since the suction panel 100 is provided in an annular shape, andparticularly since the indoor unit 1 of the air conditioner is formed ina cylindrical shape, the filter 120 may be formed in a shapecorresponding thereto.

In a conventional air conditioner, an indoor unit is provided in arectangular parallelepiped shape, and a panel provided with a suctionport is provided in a quadrangular shape. A filter disposed in thequadrangular panel is generally provided in a quadrangular shapeaccording to the shape of the panel. A suction flow path through whichair flows into an air blowing fan through the suction port is generallyprovided in a circular shape in consideration of an air flow in such away that the air is not suctioned in through four rectangular corners ofthe filter, which is an unnecessary space.

However, the filter 120 in accordance with one embodiment of the presentdisclosure may be formed in a circular shape, and a radius of the filter120 is provided to correspond to a radius of a suction flow path of theindoor unit 1 of the air conditioner to fully utilize the filter 120without unnecessary portions.

The filter 120 may include an outer circumferential frame 121 providedin a circular shape, a plurality of internal frames 122 extended in onedirection toward an inside of the outer circumferential frame 121, and aplurality of reinforcing ribs 123 which intersect with the plurality ofinternal frames 122 and reinforce rigidity of the filter 120.

Also, as shown in FIG. 33, a mesh member 124 which collects dust in theair may be provided among the plurality of internal frames 122. The meshmember 124 may be provided in a corrugated shape including ridges 124 aand furrows 124 b.

The mesh member 124 may increase in cross section and may collect alarge amount of dust when provided in the corrugated shape and forming aplurality of bent portions. The mesh member 124 may be disposed amongthe plurality of internal frames 122 and may be coupled with both sideof each of the plurality of internal frames 122.

Bent protrusions 122 a including the same shapes as the ridges 124 a andfurrows 124 b of the corrugated shape of the mesh member 124 areprovided at both ends of the internal frame 122 to allow the mesh member124 to easily get in contact with the both ends of the internal frame122.

The plurality of reinforcing ribs 123, which intersect with the internalframes 122, may intersect on the mesh member 124. Here, the reinforcingribs 123 may extend in a shape corresponding to the corrugated shape ofthe mesh member 124 to intersect with the internal frames 122 whilesupporting the mesh member 124.

That is, the reinforcing ribs 123 may intersect with the internal frames122 while including bent portions 123 c which include ridges 123 a andfurrows 123 b corresponding to the corrugated shape of the mesh member124 which includes the ridges 124 a and furrows 124 b.

The ridges 123 a and the furrows 123 b of the bent portions 123 c may beformed corresponding to the ridges 124 a and the furrows 124 b of themesh member 124 to allow the mesh member 124 to be supported by thereinforcing ribs 123 while maintaining the corrugated shape.

As shown in FIG. 34, an angle at which the internal frame 122 and thereinforcing rib 123 intersect one another may be within the range from 0to 180 degrees.

In a conventional air conditioner, as a filter is provided in aquadrangular shape, internal frames and reinforcing ribs intersect at 90degrees in consideration of an efficiency of suctioning air. However, inthe filter 120 in accordance with one embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the internal frames 122 and the reinforcing ribs 123 mayintersect one another at various angles without being limited in theirintersecting angle

The suction panel 100 includes a suction grill 101 (not shown) whichforms the suction port 110. The intersecting angle of the internalframes 122 and the reinforcing ribs 123 may freely be set within therange from 0 to 180 degrees, thereby arranging the internal frames 122and the reinforcing ribs 123 at a position of the suction grill 101.

Accordingly, since the internal frames 122 and the reinforcing ribs 123are not exposed outward, aesthetic properties may increase.

As described above, the internal frames 122 and the reinforcing ribs 123may intersect one another at various angles. However, as shown in FIG.35, the ridges 123 a or furrows 123 b of the reinforcing ribs 123 incontact with the internal frames 122 may interest with the internalframes 122 at right angles.

That is, the entire arrangement of the internal frames 122 and thereinforcing ribs 123 may be within the range from 0 to 180 degrees, butangles between the internal frames 122 and the reinforcing ribs 123 atportions where the internal frames 122 and the reinforcing ribs 123 arein contact with one another may be provided as right angles.

Since the reinforcing ribs 123 includes the plurality of bent portions123 c, even when in contact with the internal frames 122 at rightangles, the bent portions 123 c are diagonally bent and then thereinforcing ribs 123 and the internal frames 122 may generallydiagonally intersect.

The internal frames 122 and the reinforcing ribs 123 are inperpendicular contact with one another to allow the mesh member 124 tobe supported by the internal frames 122 while maintaining the entirecorrugated shape of the mesh member 124. When one side each of theinternal frames 122 and the reinforcing ribs 123 get in contact witheach other at angles other than right angles, creases occur in a sectionof the mesh member 124 corresponding thereto and it is then impossibleto maintain the corrugated shape in some sections, thereby preventing anair flow and decreasing coupling forces between the internal frames 122or the reinforcing ribs 123, which deteriorates durability.

However, in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure,the mesh member 124 may uniformly maintain the corrugated shape in thewhole area in contact with the internal frames 122, thereby overcominglimitations described above.

As is apparent from the above description, a suction panel of an airconditioner in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosurelaterally rotates with respect to a housing and is separated to allow auser to easily separate the suction panel.

Also, a suction panel of an air conditioner in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure vertically rotates with respect toa housing and is separated to allow a user to easily separate thesuction panel.

Also, a cover member of an air conditioner in accordance with oneembodiment of the present disclosure is pressurized toward a housing andis coupled to allow a user to easily couple the cover member.

Also, a filter of an air conditioner in accordance with one embodimentof the present disclosure has a circular shape and includes filterframes in various shapes.

Although a few embodiments of the present disclosure have been shown anddescribed, it should be appreciated by those skilled in the art thatchanges may be made to these embodiments without departing from theprinciples and spirit of the present disclosure, the scope of which isdefined in the claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. An air conditioner comprising: a housingincluding a suction path provided in a cylindrical shape; and a filterprovided in a circular shape corresponding to the cylindrical shape ofthe suction path, wherein the filter includes an outer circumferentialframe extending along an outer circumferential surface of the filter ina ring shape, a plurality of inner frames extending in a first directionat an inside of the outer circumferential frame, and a plurality of ribscrossing the plurality of inner frames while extending in a seconddirection, wherein the first direction and the second direction crosseach other at an angle of about 90 degrees to 180 degrees.
 2. The airconditioner of claim 1, wherein: the plurality of ribs extend in thesecond direction in a zig-zag manner, and the plurality of ribs eachincludes a plurality of crests and a plurality of troughs, the pluralityof crests disposed adjacent to the suction path and the plurality oftoughs disposed at an outer side of the plurality of crests.
 3. The airconditioner of claim 2, wherein: some of the plurality of crests and theplurality of troughs make contact with the plurality of inner frames ata right angle.
 4. The air conditioner of claim 2, further comprising: amesh member disposed between the outer circumferential frame and theplurality of inner frames and between the plurality of inner frames. 5.The air conditioner of claim 4, wherein: wherein the mesh memberincludes a plurality of crests and a plurality of troughs correspondingto the plurality of crests and the plurality of troughs of each of theplurality of ribs, wherein the plurality of crests and the plurality oftroughs of the mesh member are disposed to make contact with theplurality of crests and the plurality of troughs of each of theplurality of ribs.
 6. The air conditioner of claim 1, further comprisinga suction panel provided in a circular shape and configured to guideoutside air into the suction path, the suction panel detachably coupledto the housing, wherein the filter is detachably coupled to the suctionpanel.
 7. The air conditioner of claim 6, wherein the suction panelincludes a plurality of coupling members that are arranged in acircumferential direction of the suction panel and are inserted into thehousing.
 8. The air conditioner of claim 7, wherein each of theplurality of coupling members includes a first hook inserted into andsupported by the housing and a second hook configured to support atleast one side of the filter, wherein the filter is hooked with thesecond hook.
 9. The air conditioner of claim 6, wherein the suctionpanel includes a plurality of suction ports through which air flows intothe housing, wherein the plurality of inner frames and the plurality ofribs are disposed without overlapping the plurality of the suction portsin a direction the suction path extends.
 10. An air conditionercomprising: a housing including a suction path provided in a cylindricalshape; and a filter provided in a circular shape corresponding to thecylindrical shape of the suction path; wherein the filter includes amesh member having a plurality of crests and a plurality of troughs thatare disposed in an alternate manner to form a wrinkle, a frame extendingalong an outer circumferential surface of the mesh member, and a ribdisposed at an inside of the frame and each of which includes aplurality of crests and a plurality of troughs corresponding to thewrinkle of the mesh member.
 11. The air conditioner of claim 10, whereinthe rib further includes a support surface which extends along theplurality of crests and the plurality of troughs thereof and supportsthe mesh member, wherein the mesh member makes contact with the supportsurface.
 12. The air conditioner of claim 10, further comprising aninner frame extending in a first direction at an inside of the frame,wherein the rib extends in a second direction while crossing the innerframe at an angle of about 90 degrees to 180 degrees.